Arsenal Wenger hits back at Jose Mourinho for criticising Arsenal

Arsene Wenger at the pre-match press conference for the FA Cup final

London, May 27 (IANS)

English football club Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger on Wednesday took a swipe at Jose Mourinho after the Chelsea manager criticised Arsenal's season during a speech at the Blues' awards dinner.

In a speech that also involved the use of graphics, Mourinho suggested that Arsenal only played between January and April while claiming that the team wanted to play with two goals.

Wenger, though, hit back at Mourinho in his pre-FA Cup final media briefing, insisting that he pays little attention to the opinions of his rival.

"Forget his speech, and get to something else. I'm not interested in his speech. I just don't listen to what people say. I listen to the questions you ask to me and those I don't want to answer, I don't want to answer," Wenger was quoted saying.

Wenger said he was intensely motivated to beat Aston Villa at Wembley, but confirmed that Danny Welbeck will be absent from the match day squad, having sustained a setback in his recovery from a knee injury.

"I don't know who will start yet, that's not important, in the FA Cup final, just on the day who will start, what's important is who will bring the trophy back," the Arsenal manager said.